DAMON'S POV:

I stood back a bit, my gaze sliding around on the canvas, dark colors mingling dramatically with the brightly-colored plants.

"Wow," I muttered to myself. I had known she could sketch ridiculously good, but this painting was so realistic and it was mostly from her imagination, with the base being the scene in front of her.

"I know, its not that great, but-"

"Its amazing," I said, looking down at her as she subconsciously tucked a piece of hair behind her ear, blushing. "I want it," I said suddenly.

"What?" she asked, confused.

"I want it," I repeated. "How much do you want for it?" I pulled my wallet out of my back pocket.

She shook her head, but she was obviously proud of her work. "If you really want it, you can have it. You don't have to pay me for it."

"But you deserve it," I said, pushing forty dollars into her hand.

She pushed back. "Damon, really, I refuse to take your money. Think of it as a gift."

I sighed and put my money back.

"Well, its still gotta dry," she mumbled. "But I should probably do this." She picked up her paint brush. It seemed to fit so easily in her hand, like a missing puzzle piece that brought the bigger picture into better light, to magnify her and illuminate her beauty. She dunked the brush into black paint and began making some light strokes in the bottom corner, making some odd-looking scribbles. A signature. And she put the date under it. "There," she nodded her head at it. After snapping a quick picture of it on her phone, we headed back inside and out of the darkness.

KAILA'S POV:

We went into the living room and sat on the couch. I turned the TV on, more for background noise than anything else.

"So are you going to tell me the secret now?" I asked, turning toward him.

He turned toward me as well, his arm along the back of the couch. His eyes were boring into mine, seeming to search and prepare me. Then, finally, he said flatly, "I'm a vampire."

It took a second for my face to react, but my brain was screaming, "That's ridiculous!" the second it had come out of his mouth. However, my heart beat increased at his seriousness. I chuckled. "C'mon, Damon, seriously. You can trust me."

He didn't waver. "I'm a vampire, Kaila."

This time, I felt too nervous (and a little scared) to do any chuckling. I just stared at him, my breathing becoming irregular.

He blinked a few times before his eyes turned a deep, dark red color that flooded the whites, and black veins popped out from under his skin, worming away from his eyes.

My breath caught and I seemed to be frozen, every muscle tensed and locked into place. Vampire? The word felt odd drifting through my thoughts now.

He blinked a few more times and his eyes were back to their original, bright blue color, devoid of creepy veins. I had to admit that, though it scared the hell out of me, there was something oddly alluring about the strange way his eyes had transformed.

When it finally fully sank into my numb mind, I was only able to scamper backwards and fall off the couch, turning and running for the door. I had to get out. There was a monster in here and I was with it. But it was Damon. Surely he wouldn't hurt me. Would he? I didn't stop to think about it.

In a flash, a blur of movement, Damon was standing in front of me, a sarcastically bored expression on his face.

I screamed in surprise and tried to push against him, but he grabbed my wrists and held them tight. "What do you want?" I asked, my eyes stinging with tears of fright.

He shook his head, tossing an eye roll in for good measure. "I don't want anything. What is it with you humans? That's always the first thing you ask."

I watched him suspiciously, my breathing still coming hard.

"I knew this wasn't going to work," he sighed, almost sounding disappointed. He frowned, looking me in the eyes. His pupils did something weird, growing bigger and then shrinking back down to size over and over again. I was oddly captivated by it. "You'll remember nothing of what I told you. You wont remember that there is anything weird going on with any of your friends." He sighed. "You wont remember me." He let go of my hands and looked away.

I furrowed my brows at him. "Damon, what the hell are you talking about?"

His head snapped up, confusion clear in his eyes. Then understanding crossed over his face. "Vervain." As if that explained everything.

"What?" I asked, still confused and a little pissed off now that the fear had worn off.

He moved toward me, but I quickly flinched back. Hurt speared through his eyes before he replaced it with a cool collectiveness. "It keeps me from compelling you."

I was so lost, but I tried not to linger on it for too long. "You should go," I said quietly, tears in my voice.

Damon, one of my best friends, was a vampire. He didn't try to argue. Just disappeared. The second I looked up, no one was with me in my living room anymore.

I shivered, tears pooled in my lower lid. I rubbed my arms and let out a sigh, locking all of my doors before trudging up the stairs to my room and burying my face in Nuka's soft fur as I fell asleep. Unfortunately, vampires followed me there.

DAMON'S POV:

I had taken the picture she had given me and left the forty dollars on the edge of the easel.

After a while, when I was sure she would be asleep, I entered her bedroom window. She was snoring softly, her face rested on the dark coat of her dog, Nuka. Both were sleeping.

On her right ring finger, I saw a thin silver ring. I had noticed it before, but I guess I never really thought beyond the jewelry usage of it. If I leaned closer to her hand, I could smell it, the spicy cold burn of it. I pulled back, blinking my eyes rapidly.

I watched the smooth, relaxation on her face. "Damn it," I breathed.

As the past week unfolded, I found myself dreaming of Elena less and less (much to both her and Stefan's pleasure), and more about Kaila. I was finally in love with someone who wasn't my brother's girl. That wasn't necessarily a good thing. With Katherine on the loose again, Kaila could be in danger. There was no way Katherine wouldn't find out about my feelings for her. That just wasn't the way things worked.

I brushed a finger along her forehead, moving her bangs away from her face. She crinkled her nose when the tips of her hair swept along it. I smirked, but not the mean sarcastic smirk I was known for. This was a smirk of true adoration.


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